Some years ago a dear friend of mine
in Yorkshire wrote to me, saying he
heard I had taken hold of some strange
views regarding the doom of the finally
impenitent, and he would like to know
what these were.
I replied that it was
quite true that my mind had been
changed on this sad subject.
I no longer
believed in the eternity of future torment,
but held that the wicked would be cut
off everlastingly after the Judgment of
the Great Day.* I said that this light
that had broken out upon me from God's
Word had made our Father in Heaven
dearer to me than ever, and the Bible a
clearer book than it had been before.

*The Millennial Day.ED.

My friend immediately answered that
he was satisfied with the Orthodox belief
upon the matter, and he was sure I ought
to be.
In order to win me back to the
old path he would like to have a debate
with me by correspondence.
And as I
much appreciated his candour, kindness
and Biblical knowledge, I at once asked
him to begin the discussion by proving
from the Bible the natural immortality
of man.
This would be the right course,
I said, as he was going to take the side
of Orthodoxy, and that affirmed that all
men live forever.

In a day or so a note came, informing
me that my proposal was accepted; that
there were many passages in God's word
which stated man was an immortal being,
and that he would prepare a list of them
for me.
I knew full well that he could
not produce such a list; however, waited
patiently to see what he would further
say.

About a fortnight after I received a
letter inviting me very urgently to go
and see my friend, for he found himself
in dreadful difficulty regarding the task
he had thus undertaken.
Being able to
arrange it soon, I paid the requested
visit; and never shall I forget his look
when he said that, to his amazement, he could not find a single verse in all theBook which declared man to be immortal:on the contrary, in his searchmany turned up which taught the mortalnature of mankind.

He further said that the few passages
which at all gave plausibility to the
ordinary view of future punishment appeared
now most unsatisfactory to him:
and a little further conversation revealed
to me the fact that he already had received
the truth of Immortality in Christ
alone.

HOW HAD HE COME TO SEE IT?

Simply by searching the Scripture on
the subject.
"These," said Jesus, "testify
of Me."
My friend had gone to them
with the theory that he had received
from the instructors of his childhood, and
had searched for it in vain.
Throwing
all prejudice then overboard he had
sought for Truth, and was rewarded.
He was by the truth made free from
former error.
G. P. MACKAY.